1. Technical Field
The present invention relates to surface-emitting type semiconductor lasers and methods for manufacturing the same.
2. Related Art
Surface-emitting type semiconductor lasers are semiconductor lasers that emit a laser beam orthogonal to the semiconductor substrate, and can be readily examined during their processing compared to edge-emitting type semiconductor lasers, and their radiation pattern is circular, such that surface-emitting type semiconductor lasers are expected to be applied as various sensors and light sources for optical communications. When surface-emitting type semiconductor lasers are used for sensors and optical communications, it is desirous to obtain a laser beam having a radiation pattern with a narrow radiation angle.
To narrow the radiation angle, the film thickness of the electrode formed around the emission surface should preferably be small. However, when the film thickness is small, problems such as lowered radiation efficiency, lowered wire bonding property and the like would occur. Japanese Laid-open patent application JP-A-2004-63707 describes an example of related art.